College football just got weirder.
The Atlantic Coast Conference presidents and chancellors voted Friday morning to add Stanford, Cal and SMU starting in the 2024-25 academic year, according to multiple reports. This is just the latest in a long line of moves that assures the college football landscape will be close to unrecognizable starting next year.
The most recent wave of college sports realignment was kicked off when, in the summer of 2021, Oklahoma and Texas announced their intentions of leaving the Big 12 to join the Southeastern Conference (SEC).
Realignment has continued since then as schools sought better TV deals and stronger conferences. And suddenly, the one-time Midwestern-based Big Ten has teams on both coasts, the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) includes two teams from California, and the Pac-12 is all but dissolved.
Welcome to the new world of college football.
These moves impact a variety of sports. But realignment has largely been dictated by the money that comes from college football. Here's how the four remaining prominent football conferences will look starting next year.
ACC Realignment: Welcome, West Coast
Who's in and who's out?
Stanford, Cal and SMU are joining the ACC in 2024.
How many teams?
Starting next year, 17 teams will play football in the ACC: Clemson, Florida State, Miami, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, Duke, Cal, Stanford, SMU, Boston College, Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Wake Forest, and Louisville.
The ACC already eliminated its divisions ahead of this season and every team is playing eight conference games. The top two teams in the standings will meet to play in the ACC Championship Game.
Wacky new matchup
ACC fans can get ready for some long road trips. West Coast teams joining the conference means there is some significant distance between the new ACC schools and the old ones. For instance, Stanford and Cal are both a little more than 3,000 miles away from Miami.
Big 12 Realignment: Texas, Oklahoma out
Who's in and who's out?
Cincinnati, Houston, Central Florida (UCF) and Brigham Young (BYU) officially joined the Big 12 this summer and will play their first football seasons with the conference in 2023. Oklahoma and Texas are about to play their final season in the Big 12 before leaving for the SEC.
Next year, with the Sooners and Longhorns gone, Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State and Utah will all be joining the Big 12 from the Pac-12.
How many teams?
The Big 12, formerly the Big 8, might need a new name again. The conference will have 16 teams playing football in 2024: Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Baylor, Houston, Texas Tech, Texas Christian University (TCU), UCF, West Virginia, Cincinnati, Iowa State, Arizona, Arizona State, Utah, Colorado and BYU.
The Big 12 will continue to play nine conference games in 2024. The conference no longer uses divisions, meaning the top two teams in the regular-season standings will meet in the Big 12 Championship Game at the Dallas Cowboys' AT&T Stadium.
Wacky new matchup
Utah and UCF are just over 2,300 miles apart.
Big Ten Realignment: Hello, Pac-12 Schools
Who's in and who's out?
Four Pac-12 teams—Oregon, Washington, USC and UCLA—are joining the Big Ten ahead of the 2024 season.
How many teams?
The Big Ten will soon be the Big Eighteen (though that doesn't have the same ring to it).
Starting in 2024, the conference will be composed of 18 teams: Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, Penn State, Iowa, Indiana, Purdue, Northwestern, Illinois, Nebraska, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Rutgers, Maryland, Oregon, Washington, USC and UCLA.
The Big Ten will get rid of divisions in 2024. Each team will play nine conference games with the top two regular-season teams meeting in the Big Ten Championship Game.
Wacky new matchup
There are close to 2,800 miles separating Rutgers from USC and UCLA. A team from New Jersey playing teams from California won't exactly feel like an old-school Big Ten matchup.
SEC Realignment: Adding Two Big 12 Powers
Who's in and who's out?
Oklahoma and Texas are joining the SEC in 2024.
How many teams?
The Sooners and Longhorns joining the conference next season brings the SEC up to 16 teams: Alabama, Auburn, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Tennessee, Georgia, South Carolina, Florida, Kentucky, Vanderbilt, LSU, Texas A&M, Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas.
The SEC is also getting rid of divisions in 2024. Each team will play eight conference games with the top two meeting in the SEC Championship Game in Atlanta.
Wacky new matchup
The SEC is surely the most ordinary-looking, geographically, of the new-look power conferences. Still, among the new possible matchups, Oklahoma is still a nearly 1,200-mile journey from Florida's campus.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Robert Read is a Sports Reporter at Newsweek based in Florida. He previously spent four years working at The Daily ... Read more
